


Buckitty: The Winter Cat

by Femalemarvelfanatic, M1das



Category: Captain America, Iron Man (Movies), Marvel’s Avengers
Genre: Cat!Bucky, Cat!OC, Multi, PTSD, Panic Attack, Parent Bucky Barnes, Parent Steve Rogers, Parent Tony Stark
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2018-09-14
Updated: 2018-12-12
Packaged: 2019-07-12 12:11:37
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 4
Words: 12,605
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/15994961
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Femalemarvelfanatic/pseuds/Femalemarvelfanatic, https://archiveofourown.org/users/M1das/pseuds/M1das
Summary: Can the Winter Soldier, who is also part-cat, help two men who are always fighting find love? And maybe for himself along the way?





	1. Chapter 1

 

    “Come on, Stark. Answer your damn phone,” Steve muttered to himself, until finally the other man answered.

    “Rogers, it’s seven o’clock in the morning.” Tony didn't sound happy to be awake. “You know better than to call me this early on a Sunday unless Loki is trying to take over the world again. Wait... _is_ Loki trying to do that?” He sighed, got out of bed, and started getting dressed. “...Crap. Ok. Hang on. I’ll go put on a suit and fly to your location. Where are you, by the way? I can be there in ten minutes. Did you call the others yet, or do you want me to have F.R.I.D.A.Y. do it?”

    “Shut up and listen, Stark! Loki isn’t trying to take over the world today. You know he waits until Thursdays to do that to mess with Thor. The Avengers don’t need to assemble, but I need you to get to my location as soon as possible. I’m across the street from the New York Medical College. There’s a...” The captain hesitated and turned to look in the alley behind him. “...situation that only you and I, and possibly Doctor Banner, can handle.”

    “Bruce? You mean _actual_ Bruce, not the Hulk, right? Why would...? Are you hurt?”

    “No, I’m fine. I’m just...I need your help, Tony. Please.” The billionaire paused in typing the code to get to his latest Iron Man suit. It was rare for Steve to use his first name, and if he was doing it now, then it was important.

    “What’s wrong?” The silence went on for so long that Tony was sure the blond had hung up on him.

    “...I think it would be better if you saw this for yourself, rather than me explaining it over the phone,” Steve eventually said.

    Tony was confused, but agreed. “Ok. I’ll be there soon.”

    When he got to Steve’s location, he didn’t see the captain at first (‘ _And no buildings look damaged. Yay!_ ’), but after glancing in an alley, spotted the man, who was crouched down behind a dumpster and speaking softly. “Don’t worry,” he heard. “Everything’s going to be ok. I promise.” Tony opened the faceplate of his helmet and spoke up.

    “Capsicle? I’m here!” Steve looked over at the sound of Tony’s voice.

    “Hi, Stark. Thank you for coming so quickly. I didn’t know who else to call about...this.”

    “About what? You wouldn’t tell me what was going on over the phone.”

    Steve looked back at whoever he had been talking to when the business owner arrived. “Come on. It’s ok. Tony’s here to help. He’s Howard’s son. You remember Howard, right? The man who made my shield?” Nobody responded, but there was a slight rustling noise as someone stood up. “Good. It’s ok. You’re safe. Tony wouldn’t hurt you.” Captain Rogers stood up and slowly lead somebody out of the shadows where they had been hiding. When the person was finally in view, Tony saw that whoever it was was wearing dark jeans, a hoodie that had been pulled up over their head, and a baseball cap that was pulled down low so he couldn’t see the other person’s eyes, and their chin was almost touching their chest.

    “What’s going on?” He was a genius, but he was struggling to put the pieces together, which annoyed him, and made his words seem harsh.

    “In your dad’s stories about me, did he ever mention the Howling Commandos, or my best friend?”

    “All he said was that Sergeant Barnes fell off a train and died.”

    “Well, he did fall. I was on my way home from my run, and I saw what looked like a cat dart into the alley, so I went to investigate.”

    “You know, when you talked about getting a cat, I was _not_ imagining you getting one off the streets,” Tony interrupted.

    “Let me finish, Stark! I thought it might have gotten lost and needed help finding its way home. But it wasn’t a cat…”

    “So, a dog, then?” The genius had to take a deep breath to control his temper. “Why am I here, Rogers? You’re perfectly capable of taking the dog to the shelter on your own.”

    The blond shook his head and the stranger lifted their chin. “This is Bucky. Apparently Hydra gave him something when they kidnapped him so that he was able to survive the fall. They had him this whole time. They gave him a new arm to replace the one he lost when he fell, and gave him...well, not exactly the same serum that Dr. Erskine gave me...but as close as they could get, then wiped his memory and stuffed their Winter Soldier programming into him. And _then_ injected him with feline DNA to give him even more enhanced qualities. He’s more agile than me and has better hearing and eyesight. Unfortunately, there were things that they didn’t expect.” Bucky lowered his hood and took off his cap. Tony took a step back in shock. “Yeah. I was surprised, too. He went to the College to try to get his cat ears and tail removed, and his eyes fixed to look more human, but as soon as people saw him, they started screaming, so he ran here to hide, and I found him and called you right away.”

    Tony could hear his blood pumping in his head. There was a man, who, as it turned out, had _not_ died in World War Two, standing in front of him with a tail and ears that perfectly matched his dark brown hair, and blue eyes with diamond-shaped pupils. He felt like he couldn’t breathe. He took a few more steps back, shakily. His chest was hurting, so he tried to suck in some oxygen, but he was just gasping instead of breathing properly.

    Steve watched his teammate for a few seconds before he realized what was going on. “Stark,” he said, slowly approaching the man. “Look at me. You need to breathe, Stark. In and out. In. Out. That’s right. Nice and slow. Good. In...out. You’ll be ok. Just concentrate on breathing. Good!” Eventually, the genius’s panic attack ended and his breathing was easier. “Better?” Tony nodded.

    “Thanks, Rogers. Now, what do you need from me?”

    “I’d like Bucky to live in the Tower with the team. I’d also like you to help me explain things to Doctor Banner. At the very least, Bucky needs a check-up to make sure he’s healthy. I don’t trust any of S.H.I.E.L.D.’s doctors. Doctor Banner isn’t a medical doctor, but he’s the closest thing the team has, and I do trust him. Plus, he _probably won’t_ run screaming when he sees Bucky.”

    The man known as Iron Man was quiet for a few seconds. “I’ll help you explain things to Bruce, but I have conditions to Bucky living in the Tower.”

    The captain nodded. “I figured you would. What are they?”

    “First, he doesn’t leave the Tower without _at least_ one Avenger with him at all times. Second, he stays on your floor for a month and sees a psychologist _and_ a psychiatrist while he does. One of each. I don’t know him, so I don’t trust him, which means I want to make _absolutely sure_ that he won’t suddenly turn into the Winter Soldier before he meets the rest of the team...but _especially_ Pepper. The only exceptions to that are the medbay and my workshop. He can be there as much as he wants. Third, after that, I want him to talk to Sam Wilson for _a minimum_ of six weeks to deal with his issues.”

    “He doesn’t have any issues!”

    “Oh, come on, Rogers! He was a brainwashed assassin for Hydra for seventy years! Who knows what he believes now?! We have to make sure his mind is _his_ mind and not Hydra’s! It’s a safety precaution for all of us _and_ the rest of the world!” Tony took a deep breath and stopped yelling. “Do we have a deal or not?”

    Steve looked at Bucky and they seemed to be having a silent conversation. Finally, the blond turned back to him and nodded. “Yes. Deal.”

    “Great! Let’s go, Buckitty! We have lots to do! Including building you a new arm! I don’t want Hydra tech in the Tower longer than absolutely necessary!” Tony walked out of the alley, not looking to see if the other two men were following him, and missing the twin glares behind his back at the nickname.

    “We’ll meet you in Doctor Banner’s lab, Stark,” the blond-haired man said. The genius nodded, lowered his faceplate, then fired up his jet propellers, and flew away.


	2. Chapter 2

    Bucky looked up at Avengers Tower. Now that he was standing outside of his new home, he wasn’t so sure living there was a good idea. “Steve…” he whispered, taking a step back.

    “Yeah, Buck?” The blond turned from unlocking the front door to see his childhood friend trying to hide in the shadows, and his tail, which he had been hiding in the back of his hoodie, was dragging on the ground. ‘ _He’s scared!_ ’ Steve realized, having seen a lot of stray cats when he was growing up in Brooklyn. “What’s wrong, pal?”

    Bucky brought his tail in front of his body. He started wringing it, the way some people wring their hands when they’re nervous. “Are you sure this is a good idea? I mean, the last time I was around people, they started screaming. Or what if... What if this doctor is like the ones at Hydra?”

    Steve sighed, then walked over to Bucky and gave him a hug, then loosened his arms, but kept them around his friend. “Listen to me. Ok, yes, the others might be a little bit surprised when they see you at first, but we’re the Avengers. We have a teammate who _literally_ turns into a different person when he’s angry. You having cat ears and a tail isn’t really _that_ big of a deal to them, _or me_. But that isn’t really important right now, since you’ll just be staying on my floor with me for a while. As for this doctor being like the ones at Hydra... he isn’t. I promise you, he’s _nothing_ like them. If you’re really that scared, I’ll stay with you the entire time, ok?”

    The hybrid let go of his tail. “Ok. Let’s go see the doctor.”

    The captain unlocked the door and headed for the lobby elevator. “F.R.I.D.A.Y.?” he said, looking at the left-hand corner of the ceiling. “This is my friend, Sergeant Barnes. He’s going to be living here in the Tower from now on. Could you please add him to your list of approved people, and help him with whatever he needs?”

    “Of course, Captain. Hello, Sergeant Barnes.” The man visibly flinched at his rank. “Welcome to Avengers Tower! My name is F.R.I.D.A.Y. I’m an A.I., an artificial intelligence, built by Tony Stark. I’m integrated in almost every room in the Tower, as well as Boss’s Iron Man suits. If you need assistance with anything, please feel free to ask me.” Bucky gave a closed-mouth smile and he nodded.

    “Thank you, but please call me Bucky,” he whispered.

    Steve grinned and both men finally got onto the elevator. “Could you take us to Doctor Banner’s lab, please?” he asked. “I think he’s expecting us.”

    “Yes, Captain.”

    As the elevator started moving, F.R.I.D.A.Y. spoke up again. “Captain, Doctor Banner has just informed me that he’d like to meet you and Bucky in the medbay. Shall I take you there instead?”

    “Yes, please! Thank you, F.R.I.D.A.Y.!”

    Soon, the elevator stopped and the doors opened. When the two men exited, they saw Tony and another man standing in a room across the hall, deep in discussion. “Is that the doctor?” Bucky asked, whispering so that only Steve could hear him. The genius and the doctor both turned at the sound of the two super-soldiers approaching.

    “Oh, I _thought_ I saw a puddy tat!” the billionaire said. “I _did_! I _did_ see a puddy tat!”

    “We don’t understand that reference, Stark.” The captain rolled his eyes. “Bucky, this is Doctor Bruce Banner.” The man standing next to Tony waved awkwardly. Bucky didn’t respond, but he turned around to face his best friend, then buried his face in the blond’s neck, who put his arm around him. “Um...Bucky? What…?”

    “If _I_ can’t see _him_ , then _he_ can’t see _me_ ,” the soldier whispered again.

    “Yeah...that’s not how that works,” Steve said. “Come on, Buck.” He gently pushed his friend off of him. The hybrid retaliated by carefully sinking one of his canines, which was sharp like a cat’s, into the neck he had been hiding his face in, then letting go. He turned toward the doctor and waved back.

    “Hi, Bucky! It’s nice to meet you!” Bruce smiled, then turned to Tony. “Could you tell me what I’m doing here, please?”

    “Capsicle found Bucky when he was on his run. We’d like you to give him a check-up.”

    “You all know I’m not _that_ kind of doctor, right?”

    “Yes, but Steve doesn’t trust the S.H.I.E.L.D. doctors, but he trusts _you_ , so _you_ are who we turned to. After the check-up, could you see if you can do anything about his…” He sighed, and looked at Steve. “Maybe _you_ should tell Bruce.”

    “Coward,” the captain muttered, then spoke up. “Cliff’s Notes version: Bucky fell off a train in nineteen-forty-five, got kidnapped by Hydra, given _their_ version of the same serum I got, then had his memory wiped and was forcibly turned into the Winter Soldier. Then they injected him with feline DNA to make him a better assassin for them. The DNA gave him cat ears and a tail, and changed his eyes to be more like a cat’s, so he’s more limber than I am, and has better eyesight and hearing.”

    Bruce blinked and his eyes turned from their usual golden-brown color to green. “Give me a minute,” he growled before turning and walking away.

    “Nice one, Rogers,” the business owner said sarcastically. “If he Hulks Out because of this, I’m blaming you,” he said, pointing at the captain.

    “I swear, Stark, one more word out of you, and I’ll…”

    “Excuse me?” They all turned to see a woman, wearing blue-gray scrubs that perfectly matched her eyes, standing close by. “My name is Cilly. I’m one of the nurses here for the Tower’s medbay.” The woman, who had half-bleached and half-shaved hair, slowly walked up to Bucky. “While the doctor is gone, may I take your vital signs?” she asked, speaking softly so as not to further scare the already nervous man. “I heard what Captain Rogers said about your past. I promise I won’t do anything more invasive than take your temperature. Captain, if you’d like to stay with your friend, you may.” Bucky nodded, and she lead the two men to another room with a bed, leaving the genius to go find Bruce, and calm him down if he could. “Please sit. I’d like to start with basic information so I can start a medical chart for you. Can you tell me your birthdate, how tall you are, and how much you weigh, Sergeant?”

    “He prefers Bucky,” Steve told her. “His birthdate is March tenth, nineteen-seventeen. He’s five-nine, and he weighs two hundred and sixty pounds.”

    She wrote down that information on a notepad that she had taken out of her pants-pocket. “Thank you, Captain. May I ask why _you_ are answering, when I’m asking _Bucky_ the questions? He _can_ speak, can’t he?”

    “Of course he can. He just…” He sighed. “He spent seventy years _not_ speaking unless it was to confirm one of Hydra’s orders. If he spoke at any other time, he was punished. _Horrifically_ punished. So, now, he’s only been speaking to me because he knows I won’t hurt him, and he either waits until we’re alone, or, if other people are around and he has no choice, in whispers. And Hydra wiped his memory for years and years, so there are... gaps.”

    “I see. Well…” the nurse was interrupted by a knock on the door. Bruce had come back, this time looking a lot calmer than he had earlier.

    “Thank you, Cilly. I’ll take it from here,” he said. She nodded and left the room, closing the door behind her.

    “Hi, Steve. Tony went down to his workshop to get started on a design for Bucky’s new arm. He wants both of you to go down there when you’re done here. Hello, Bucky! My name is Bruce. Tony and Steve asked me to take a look at you, just to make sure you’re healthy. And maybe see if I can if I can help you with your ears and tail. Is that ok?” Bruce’s voice was calm, gentle, and soothing, so Bucky immediately felt relaxed around him and nodded. “Good! Could you take off your hat and hoodie for me, please?” The hybrid did as the doctor asked. “Thank you. Now, let me take a look…” He reached up and gently parted the super-soldier’s hair. After a few minutes, he stopped and took a step back. “Well, I’ll have to consult with a friend of mine, who’s a neurosurgeon, or he was before his accident... and run a few tests…” Bucky interrupted him with an inhuman screech, and ran for the door.

    Steve stood up and quickly blocked the door before his friend could leave. “You lied to me!” the hybrid whispered angrily. “You said he wasn’t like the other doctors! _You lied_!”

    “Bucky, stop,” the blond said, using his “I am the Captain, and you _will_ follow orders” voice. “I _did not_ lie to you! Think, Buck! In all the years you’ve known me, have I ever lied to you?” The other super-soldier shook his head. “Exactly. So, why would I start now?”

    “You wouldn’t,” he mumbled.

    “Right. Now, tell me what’s going on.” Bucky sighed.

    “Tests. He wants to do tests. Hydra did tests, too. They wanted to see how good my eyesight and hearing was at first. Then they wanted to test my healing abilities to see how long different types of injuries would take to heal. They hurt _so much_ , Steve. I can’t... Please don’t make me go through that again! Please don’t let him or his friend hurt me,” he begged.

    “Steve?” Bruce said quietly. “Maybe we should do this another time. When Bucky is more comfortable being in the Tower. I can just do a quick check to make sure he’s healthy, then we can talk about the ears and tail situation later. It won’t take long. Maybe five minutes.” He began his exam and was done within a few minutes. “Well, I don’t know about the cat-side of things, but from a human perspective, you are completely fine!” Bucky grinned and gave the doctor a quick hug, surprising everyone in the room.

    “That’s great, Bucky!” Steve said. “I’ll make whatever you want for dinner to celebrate, and to welcome you to your new home. But, for right now, we should go see Tony. We’ll see you later, Bruce.”

    “See you, Steve! Bye, Bucky!”

    As the two super-soldiers were leaving, the hybrid turned to face Bruce, grinned again, and waved, then he turned back to his friend. “Steve? Can we have tuna for dinner?” he asked in a whisper.

    

 

    

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Femalmarvelfanatic and M1das would like to say a HUGE “Thank you” to thanksveryga on Tumblr for helping us come up with a better summary for this fic! As a thank you to her, she’s been given a cameo in this chapter!


	3. Chapter 3

   Bucky’s neck hurt, his skin was sticky, and the whole room felt a little too hot for his liking. He shifted to the side, snuggling closer to Steve. The night before, the captain had announced that he was going to bed, and the soldier had just...followed him into his bedroom.

    Briefly remembering a song that his handler in Hydra sang to him during their missions, he whispered the lyrics to himself, trying to fall back asleep.

    “Котя, котенька, коток…”

    “Bucky…” the blond complained, wrapping an arm around the hybrid.

    “Котя серенький хвосток...”

    “I’m trying to sleep, Buck.”

    “I’m going to the kitchen, then,” Bucky said, getting out of bed, and walked towards the door.

    Being in Avengers Tower had its benefits. It was at least one level higher than all of the other buildings around them, which meant he could watch the sunrise from the kitchen window while his coffee brewed. His friend had taught him how to use the coffee maker last night, and had even left out the instruction booklet in case he got confused. When it was finally finished, he poured himself a cup, and then burnt his tongue on the hot beverage.

    He heard footsteps behind him and quickly turned around to see Tony entering the kitchen. He had dark bags under his eyes.

    “Hey, James,” the billionaire said when he saw Bucky, who had moved to sit at the kitchen table, but there was no response. “Why do I even bother?” he whispered to himself.

    The genius grabbed a Captain America mug from the dishwasher, filled it with coffee, and walked towards the elevator that lead to the workshop he had so carefully created for himself.

    The feline knew he wouldn’t be falling back asleep any time soon, so he decided to see where the mechanic spent most of his time. The elevator was fairly easy to use, but unfortunately his passcode, which was supposed to work on every door in the tower, did not work to open the workshop’s door. After several failed attempts, he decided to just tap on the glass doors until the genius let him in. Tony didn’t notice at first, the glass was soundproof after all. Just as he was about to go back to his room, the door unlocked, and the hybrid happily skipped over to the genius’s left side, but the other man _still_ didn’t say anything to him.

    Bucky wondered if the other man was just upset and ignoring him for his own sake, or if he had done something wrong, but all of his doubts went away as soon as the space between his cat ears, on top of his head, was petted.

    Tony sat by the table, working on a tiny piece with a magnifying glass, his back arched in a way that made the former assassin wonder if it hurt to sit like that for hours, but never heard him complaining. The mechanic pulled over a chair for the feline, who sat down before crossing his arms over the table and letting his chin rest on them, silently watching the businessman work. After a few more minutes, the man known as Iron Man finally spoke.

    “You know that I wouldn’t mind if you talked to me, right?” Bucky nodded his head up and down. “You still won’t talk to me, will you?” He didn’t wait for an answer and grabbed a notepad he had lying around. “Write if you want to,” he said before going back to his work, starting over on the piece he had been working on since last night, but just couldn’t get right. His hands were shaking and he was almost falling asleep on top of the soldering iron, but refused to go to sleep until it was completed.

    Soon a letter slid under his elbow. Tony had no idea how to read the messy Russian that the super-soldier wrote.

    “You can’t remember how to write in English?” The younger man shook his head. “Oh, great!” the billionaire said, rolling his eyes. “Remind me to teach you again later, ok?”

    They heard the workshop door open. Steve stood in the doorway, his hair still wet from taking a shower first thing in the morning, and the feline wondered how the shirt he was wearing didn’t rip from how tight it was.

    “How about a break, boys? I made you breakfast,” he said before giving them a charming smile and going back to the kitchen. Both men immediately stood and followed him.

    “Did you make _tuna_?” the former assassin whispered in the blond’s ear, hopefully.

    “Buck, we had that for dinner, remember?”

    “Yeah. So what?” The soldier already knew that they had it for dinner, but couldn’t understand why that meant they couldn’t have the same thing for breakfast. And lunch. And dinner that night. And also tomorrow’s breakfast.

    “What? What’s Buckitty want?” the business owner asked, and got twin glares in return.

 _‘That’s it! His shirts are gonna get shredded!_ ’ the hybrid thought darkly.

    “ _Bucky_ wants to know if I made tuna for breakfast.”

    “Whatever, I am going to sleep,” Tony said grumpily, pressing the elevator buttons with rage.

    Bucky seemed sad for a second, almost depressed. Steve pulled him closer, wrapping his arms warmly around the soldier, in an attempt to comfort him.

    “Don’t worry, pal. He’s just in a bad mood.”

    The feline ate his breakfast, sickly sweet pancakes, quickly and ran to the workshop, the door of which opened for him immediately. The room was deserted, except for one of Tony’s bots, who was out of its charger to greet anyone who walked in, and keep them company. He looked around, but couldn’t see the business owner. As he was about to leave, he caught sight of the project that the mechanic had been working on while the hybrid watched, and had left unfinished. It was a new mechanical arm to replace the one the super-soldier currently had, one that wasn’t responsible for so many murders. It wasn’t fancy in its design yet, but he _absolutely_ _loved it_! It was a solid piece of vibranium, without overlapping plates like the one he was currently using, except for the joints, which were made out of steel. And, best of all, there was no red star on the shoulder.

    ‘ _Beautiful_ ,’ he thought to himself as he looked at his present from Tony. As he looked at it, he saw what the genius had been having trouble with. He tried to remember everything Zola once taught him, in case he damaged his arm during a mission and had no one around that could fix it for him. Maybe if he helped Tony fix _this_ arm, the man wouldn’t be in a bad mood anymore. ‘ _Tony might give me more head rubs! Or tuna! But I’m still gonna shred his shirts!_ **_Nobody_ ** _calls me Buckitty and gets away with it! I think I’ll start with his precious Black Sabbath shirt! After I fix the arm, though._ ’ As he reached his hand forward to grab a screwdriver and fix the elbow joint that keep falling off the main structure, he heard beeps behind him. Bucky turned just in time to see Steve open the door and walk in.

    “I’m going to the farmer’s market in Union Square. Wanna come with me?” the blond asked. The soldier’s cat ears perked up and he grinned happily, then stood up and ran to get dressed.

    Steve asked Bucky to cover up, not only because he was part-cat, but also because he didn’t want anyone recognizing them, although the little old lady from the fruit stand recognized him in the first few weeks, even with the baseball cap and hoodie on.

    “Stay close to me, okay?” he asked, before grabbing an umbrella to keep them dry from the rain.

    Bucky was almost completely hidden under the shadow of the umbrella and behind Steve’s tall frame, holding the blond’s hand and keeping the metal one inside his pocket.

    “Oh! Hello, Steven. Do you need anything else today?” she asked, already packing the fruits the captain always asked for.

    “Do you have any plums?” he asked, knowing that they were his friend’s favorite. She guided him toward the plums, in-between peaches and apricots.

    “Wanna choose, Buck?” he asked, but the soldier wasn’t listening. He was preoccupied, and looking at something else.

    Bucky stepped out from under the umbrella and walked a few yards away from his friend, his eyes never leaving a nearby tree where a small group of pigeons were sitting and chirping to each other. One bird turned its head, looked directly at the hybrid, and let out a short series of chirps. In response, he made a noise that, to Steve, sounded like a cat _trying_ to chirp like a bird. The pigeon chirped again, and suddenly the former Hydra assassin lunged at the group of birds, and tried to catch the one he had been chirping to.

    “What the fuck?” Steve muttered to himself as he watched the scene. As the minutes clicked by, with no end in sight to the soldier’s fight with the pigeon, the captain got more and more nervous. If he kept chasing the bird, his hat would fall off, and his secret would be exposed, which was something that the blond _didn’t_ want to happen. Making up his mind to tell his friend to back down, he took a step forward, only to stop and look on in fear as the hat did, in fact, fall off the brunette’s head.

    He dropped his umbrella, quickly walked over, stanched up the hat, ran to the super-soldier, who was crouched on the ground, and crammed it on Bucky’s head before anyone could see the cat ears.

    “It’s time to go, Buck!”

    “But…” he said, standing up.

    “ _Now_ , Bucky!” He grabbed the feline’s arm and half-dragged, half-carried him to the car. Unfortunately, in his rush to leave, he forgot about his umbrella, so by the time they got to the car, they were both soaking wet, so now Steve had to worry about Bucky getting sick on top of everything else.

    He took off the hoodie he was wearing and wrapped it around the hybrid that was shaking from the cold and turned on the car’s heater. The first thing he did when they got inside the Tower was to shove Hydra’s former assassin inside the master bathroom on his private floor.

    “I don’t like the water, Stevie!” the other super-soldier pouted, glaring at the bathtub.

    “I’m sorry, Buck, but you don’t have a choice.” Steve started stripping the feline of his clothes, trying not to cry at the sight of the bullet wounds and scars all over his torso and back.

    He lead the hybrid towards the water. The brunette purred when the warm water surrounded him and closed his eyes.

    “Ok,” he admitted. “ _Maybe_ water isn’t so bad. I’m definitely warmer now.”

    “May I wash your hair?” the captain asked softly.

    “If you promise not to get my ears wet. It hurts.”

    Steve grabbed a shower cap with flowers all  over it and a pair of scissors. He placed the cap on Bucky’s head and carefully cut it so that it only covered his cat ears.

    “Better?” The soldier nodded, closed his eyes, and let him wash his hair. After a few minutes, his hair was washed and the blond spoke again. “Oh! I found something for you. Let me go get it!” He reached up to the shelf next to the tub and pulled down a white cat.

    “What is that?” the hybrid asked. “It’s cute.”

    “It’s a bath squirter. You squeeze its sides, then put it under the water and let go so that water gets sucked inside. Then pull it out of the water and squeeze the sides again so that it squirts out water. Wanna try, Buck?” The feline grinned and spent the next hour spraying Steve with water, giggling happily the whole time. Eventually the captain said that it was time to get out of the bathtub. He wrapped a towel around the hybrid’s waist, then picked up another towel to carefully dry his cat ears and tail.

    “Ok. I pulled out a set of pajamas for you. Go put them on and come back here. We need to dry your hair.”

    Bucky was back in a few minutes, and walked in to see Steve with a brush in one hand and a hairdryer in the other. As soon as it was switched on, the brunet hissed and started batting at the hot air.

    “Bucky, stop!”

    “But I don’t like it,” he complained, actually hitting the appliance.

    “If you don’t stop, you’ll knock it out of my hand, and then your hair will stay wet, and you’ll get sick. Is that what you want?” The hybrid shook his head. “Alright, then hold still.”

    “ _But I don’t like it!_ ” He hit the hairdryer again.

    “Knock it off or no tuna for a month!” Steve threatened. The super-soldier pouted, but stopped moving. When they were finished, about fifteen minutes later, Bucky decided to go down to the workshop and check on Tony, hitting the captain in the face with his tail on his way out.

    ‘ _Serves him right for threatening to take away my tuna!_ ’ Bucky thought angrily as he walked into the workshop, then stopped. The genius was at his work table, with his arms folding on top, head resting on them, and fast asleep. In front of him was the prosthetic arm that he had been working on.

    ‘ _I guess he still hasn’t figured out how to fix the elbow yet. That’s ok!_ _I’ll do it for him!’_ he thought to himself, and got to work helping the business owner. An hour later, he was done. ‘ _I did it! Now for my next job…_ ’ He walked over to a supply cabinet and grabbed a pair of scissors. The hybrid walked back over to the sleeping man and carefully began cutting up the shirt the billionaire was wearing. Soon, the top looked more like a crop-top than a t-shirt. Satisfied with everything he had done, the super-soldier put the scissors away and went back upstairs, leaving just as Tony was waking up.

    The genius stretched and yawned, then looked at his worktable. Still laying on the corner was the letter Bucky had written to him that morning. “F.R.I.D.A.Y., translate this for me.”

    “‘I see you're struggling with the arm. You're beautiful when you're so focused on something, even though you look so tired. I wish I could make you sleep better, and cuddle you and Steve all night. I usually don't talk to you because I’m not really comfortable speaking. I’m not trying to be mean, I just… They used to hurt me if I spoke without being spoken to, so I don’t really talk anymore. I don’t think you’ll hurt me, but I’ve learned that it’s safer to not talk around people I don’t know that well. I’m sorry! I hope you don't hate me. Love your eyes. Kisses, Bucky’,” she responded after a moment. The mechanic frowned.

    ‘ _Poor Bucky! No wonder he doesn’t talk much...or at all when he’s alone with me. He probably gets horrible nightmares because of his time with them. That would explain why he noticed my sleeping habits, or lack of sleeping. Huh. No one’s worried about me since J.A.R.V.I.S. was alive. Cuddling with Buckitty does sound nice… I wonder if he’d be ok with me being the little spoon. I wouldn’t even mind being the big spoon, though. I bet hugging him would great. They both seem like they give really good hugs. Bucky would probably give me an extra little squeeze in the middle of his hugs. And Steve would probably make breakfast for all of us in the morning, like he did a few days ago. When was the last time I ate? Oh, well. I’ll eat after I finish the arm! Back to work!_ ’ He looked down at his project and frowned. The elbow was fixed, but he saw the same problem he‘d had all day.

    “Did I…? F.R.I.D.A.Y., play the security footage from the last few hours. I think I might be sleep-working again.” A screen popped up in front of him and he watched the last few hours in silence.

    “Buckitty!” the billionaire muttered to himself. He quickly changed his shirt, then picked up the prosthetic arm, got in the elevator, and went to...have a little talk with Bucky.

    “Anthony is coming,” the hybrid announced to Steve. “I can hear him in the elevator.”

    “Barnes!” Tony called angrily once he was on the captain’s floor. “What the fuck did you do to my project?”

    “Hold on, Stark! You don’t know that it was Bucky!”

    “Yes, I do! There are cameras all over the Tower. I watched the footage from my workshop, so I _know_ it was him! Now, once again… What. The. _Fuck_. Did. You. Do?”

    Bucky looked proud of himself. “I fixed the elbow!” he whispered, happily, talking to Steve. “Anthony was stressed, so I helped! Zola taught me. And all my handlers made sure to break something on my arm after every wipe, to check that I still knew how to fix it. And I was always able to do it!”

    “Bucky saw that you were stressed, so he tried to help by fixing the elbow for you,” the super-soldier translated for the businessman, deciding to leave out the parts about Hydra.

    “Yes, you fixed the elbow. Congratulations,” the genius said sarcastically. “But you fucked up something else on your new arm which I now have to go back and fix, which will take me even longer than if you hadn’t done anything.” He pulled the arm out from behind his back. Steve burst out laughing when he saw the fist flipping Bucky off. “ _Shut up, Rogers_!” Tony growled, and pushed the prosthetic middle finger into the soldier’s face. “ _This! This_ is why I was having stress! You were able to attach the elbow. _Good for you_. But that wasn’t the problem!” He shoved the arm into Bucky’s face again, then turned and walked back to the elevator and disappeared from view, taking the prosthetic with him.

    The hybrid’s ears and tail drooped in sadness. “I was just trying to help,” he sniffled.

    “I know you were, Buck. And Tony knows it, too. He’s just upset because attaching the elbow made the middle finger flip him off.” The captain paused, trying not to laugh out loud again. “Don’t worry. He’ll calm down in a little while, then you can go apologize to him. I know talking to people is scary, but I think you have to.”

    “Yeah. Oh! Maybe I can bring him a gift when I go to apologize!”

    “I think he’d like that. Do you want to go back outside to get a present for him?”

    “No, thanks, Stevie. I already have something I can give him!” He stood up and ran to his room to collect the pigeon he had fought with, killed, and snuck into the house that morning, all without Steve knowing about it. He had originally been planning to give it to the blond as a “thank you” for helping him, but this was better. Bucky started purring as he put the bird into his pocket and left his room, then walked to the elevator and went back to Tony’s workshop. ‘ _How do I apologize to him when I’m shy and afraid of getting hurt, like Hydra always hurt me? I know! I’ll do it in Russian!_ ’ he thought to himself as he entered the room.

    “What is it, Barnes? I’m busy trying to fix your fuck-up,” the billionaire greeted him as he walked in. The hybrid stood there for a second, not saying anything. “Still don’t feel up to talking to me? Ok. Let me go get a notepad and pen for you, so you can write out an apology.” He stood up from where he’d been sitting next to Bucky’s new arm and went to the other side of the room. As soon as his back was turned, the super-soldier pulled the bird out of his pocket, put it next to the other man’s project, said a quick “извиняюсь”, and ran out of the room, all before Tony could turn back around.

    “F.R.I.D.A.Y., call Natasha.” After a few seconds, the red-head answered.

    “Stark, I’m on a mission, so this better be an emergency.”

    “Barnes is going to murder me!” he said in a rush. He could feel a panic attack starting. ‘ _Oh god. Pepper is going to be so mad at me for dying!_ ’

    “...excuse me?”

    “Right. Context. You need context. Steve found Bucky Barnes, who now has cat ears, cat eyes, and a tail. Steve asked me to let him live with us in the Tower. I’m building a new arm for Bucky. I don’t want Hydra tech in my building! I guess I fell asleep, and Bucky tried to help fix the arm. But he broke another part. I kind of yelled at him a little bit, then went back to my workshop to fix it. Bucky was just here. He put a dead bird...I think it’s a pigeon...on my worktable, threatened to murder me in Russian, and left!” ‘ _I should have written a will. Pepper gets the company. Rhodey gets the Iron Man suits. Happy gets all my cars.’_

    She was silent for a second. “What _exactly_ did he say to you?”

    “He called me an izvinyayus!” ‘ _I wonder if I can have Bill Gates give my eulogy…_ ’

    “извиняюсь? Are you sure that’s what he said?” she asked.

    “ _Yes_! _”_ Natasha sighed.

    “He was saying sorry, you dumbass!” ‘ _And Peter and May can have most of my money. I want some of it donated to charities. Wait, what was that?’_

    “He said ‘sorry, you dumbass’?” ‘ _Rude!_ ’

    “No. _I’m_ calling you a dumbass!” ‘ _Also rude!_ ’ “ _He_ was apologizing!”

    “Oh. But...what about the bird?”

    “Maybe being with Hydra for that long made him a little crazy?”

    “Maybe… Thanks, Natasha. Stay safe!”

    “I will. Bye, Stark.” As she was hanging up, the mechanic could have sworn he heard Clint in the background, saying that the tacos were ready.

    F.R.I.D.A.Y. ended the call.

    “So, it’s from spending too much time with Hydra,” Tony muttered to himself as he used a magazine to sweep the bird into a garbage can. “Well, it makes sense that their level of crazy would rub off on Buckitty. Buckitty… Buck kitty. Kitty. Oh. Wait a minute!” He grabbed a Starkpad and did some research. “Well, of course he would bring me a dead bird. Cats bring their owners gifts sometimes! It all makes sense. He came to apologize, and brought me a present. That’s...a little creepy, but kinda sweet, too!” The billionaire sighed and got back to work on the prosthetic.

    After working on it for another three days, he was exhausted, but finally finished. The arm was _perfect_! “F.R.I.D.A.Y.! Tell Buckitty that I need him down here! His arm is ready!”

    “The message has been delivered,” she confirmed after a moment. “Bucky is currently in the elevator and will be with you in approximately thirty seconds.”

    “Hi, kitten!” Tony said when Bucky walked in. The feline purred in response to the term of affection. “Your new arm is ready.”

    “извиняюсь,” the hybrid said again.

    “You’re forgiven. But next time, ask before you try to fix anything, ok? And maybe don’t give me anything dead as a present, yeah? And also stay away from my clothes, maybe?” He petted the super-soldier on the head before turning to the new arm. “We just have to figure out how the arm you have now was attached. Any chance they might have told you?”

    The other man shook his head. “Я не помню. Гидра никогда не применяла анестезию, когда они выполняли операцию на мне, поэтому я потерял сознание от боли. И после каждой миссии они вытащили меня через салфетки и каждый раз, когда их _оружие_ нарушалось.” The genius sighed.

    “Well, Russian is better than nothing, I guess. F.R.I.D.A.Y., translate that for me.”

    “Here you go, Boss. ‘I don’t remember. Hydra never used anesthesia when they would perform surgery on me, so I passed out from the pain. And they would put me through mind wipes after every mission, and every time their _weapon_ malfunctioned.’”

    The billionaire immediately saw red. “Get Bruce and Rogers down here _now_ , F.R.I.D.A.Y.!” Bucky whimpered in fear at the man’s angry voice.

    “Captain Rogers is on his way, and Doctor Banner will be at the workshop in a few minutes. He is in the middle of a time-sensitive experiment.”

    “Fine. Tell Brucie I’ll give him three minutes. This is more important.” He turned to the hybrid, who was crouched down into a fetal position in the far left corner if the room, with his back against the wall. Tony stepped over to him and bent down so they were eye-level. “Bucky? What’s wrong?”

    “Ты безумен. Пожалуйста, не сердись на меня. Мне жаль. Что бы я ни сделал, чтобы рассердить тебя, мне очень жаль! Пожалуйста, не обижай меня!” The super-soldier shrunk back in fear.

    “You’re scared,” Tony realized. “ _Why_ are you scared? F.R.I.D.A.Y., what did he say? Why is he scared?”

    “It’s your anger, Boss. Bucky thinks it’s his fault.” There was a moment of silence. “He’s apologizing for whatever he did to make you angry and begging you not to hurt him.”

    The genius sighed. “Oh, Bucky… My anger is at _Hydra_ for what they forced you to go through. It isn’t your fault. Nothing that’s happened to you because of Hydra has ever been your fault.” He was cut off from saying anything more by Steve and Bruce entering the room.

    “Stark? What’s wrong? Is Bucky ok?” the captain asked, concerned for his friend.

    “Yeah, Capsicle.” The man stood up and walked over to them. “Buckitty is just fine. I have something to tell you two. I was talking to him about his new arm, and I said that we’d have to figure out how the arm he has now was attached. He said that he doesn’t remember because he passed out from the pain. Hydra, who I will now refer to as ‘ _fucking_ Hydra’, _fucking surgically attached the fucking arm to his fucking body without fucking anesthesia_!” He took a deep breath to try and control his temper. “I really fucking hate people sometimes. Especially fucking Hydra.”

    Bruce looked down and pinched the bridge of his nose. When he looked back up, his eyes were green. “I’m sorry. I need to...not be here for a few minutes. The Other Guy wants to come out and” his voice suddenly changed to Hulk’s deeper growl, “smash puny men who hurt Kitty!” The scientist blinked and his eyes turned back to their usual brown color. “I’ll be back...eventually.” He turned and walked out of the workshop.

    Steve stayed silent, with a blank expression on his face. He walked over to where Bucky was still kneeling, and slowly and gently reached his hand forward to rest it on the former assassin’s shoulder. As soon as it made contact, the feline let out a pitiful kitten-like cry, crawled into the captain’s lap, and wrapped his arms around the blond. Captain Rogers couldn’t think of anything to do except rub the man’s back to try to calm him.

    “What do we do? How do we help Bucky?” he asked after a few minutes of trying to soothe his friend, who had fallen asleep in his lap. For the first time since waking up, he was at a complete loss on what to do.

    “Well, first, we put Bucky’s new arm on. Then we Assemble and come up with a plan for going after fucking Hydra,” Tony said decisively. Steve nodded.

    “We’re not gonna stop until all of Hydra is either dead or captured,” he vowed.

    “Agreed. Now, I hate to say this, but I think Buckitty should start talking to somebody sooner rather than later. Our kitten needs more help than we can give him.”

    “I’ll call Sam. He might be able to refer us to people that Bucky can see.”

    Bruce came back in the room, looking tired but calm. “I called my neurosurgeon friend. He was busy with another situation, but he’ll call us back. Since the arm Bucky has now was surgically attached to him…” He paused to take a calming breath. “...we’ll have to operate _one last time_ to detach that arm and put on the one that Tony made. And Doctor Strange should consult on it since Bucky needs the synapses in his brain to fire correctly to work his arm. I’d like to get it done as soon as possible.” He turned to Tony. “Are you available to assist me tomorrow morning? I’ll need help with attaching the new arm.” The genius nodded.

    “I can be. Eight in the morning?”

    “That’s fine. Steve, make sure Bucky doesn’t have anything to eat or drink after midnight tonight, ok?” Steve nodded just as the hybrid was waking up.

    “Hi! How was your nap?”

    “Good. What’s going on?” He sat up.

    “We’re just talking about the plan for your new arm,” Tony said. “We think it would be best if you had one last surgery to detach the arm that fucking Hydra gave you, then reattach the one I made.”

    “We’ll give you anesthesia, of course!” Bruce said, seeing that the feline was getting nervous. “And you’ll be able to sleep through the whole operation.” The former assassin didn’t look happy about going through another surgery, but he agreed, knowing that it was the best option.

    The next morning, Bucky was on the hard hospital mattress, the tv on the wall streamed some bad show, and his arm hurt from the IV poking it.

  
    “I’m hungry,” he whined.

  
    Steve nodded. “I know you are. You can eat after the surgery.”

    A young medical intern entered the room. He checked Bucky’s medical history and the IV.

  
    “Is everything alright? The anesthesiologist will come in a second,” he said before leaving. Steve nodded then comforted Bucky, petting his ears. A few minutes later, he was taken to the operating room, which had a theater for people to watch the procedure. Tony hands were shaking. He could feel Steve’s glare from the gallery.

  
    “Your turn, Stark,” Doctor Banner said, giving the mechanic some space. The nurse pulled his mask up on his face. He grabbed a small saw he had and cut most of the arm off before harshly dismounting everything around the shoulder.

  
    Bruce and his fellow doctors then started to dig the flesh to take all of the metal off. The sight made Tony cry, but the nurses only wiped his face and pretended that nothing happened.

  
    “I believe Stark should attach it. He is the most experienced, after all,” Stephen Strange commented. Tony asked him to assist them through video-conference.

  
    Tony mounted everything back in about fifteen minutes, just wanting Bucky’s pain to be over. He knew he wasn’t actually hurting because of the anesthesia, but the more time passed, the more Tony felt like the soldier wouldn’t make it.

  
    “We’ll take him to post-op, if you allow,” a nurse asked.

    Tony’s dirty gloves gripped the stretcher handles, and he was pretty sure his knuckles were white underneath it. He let go and his hands hurt from being so tense.

  
    He took off the mask, hat, gloves, and scrubs, and sat down for a second, his heart beat too hard for him to listen to anything else, so he jumped a bit when Steve spoke, having not heard him approach.  

    “You did great,” the captain assured him, and the ringing in his ears stopped for a second. “Bucky is alright and in the recovery room. We’ll be able to see him in a few hours.”

    Bucky blinked awake around mid-afternoon and immediately wrinkled his nose at the terrible smell of chemicals. He looked around the room to find the source, and saw Steve sitting by his left shoulder, bent almost in half, and concentrating on a design that he was painting on Bucky’s shoulder.

    “Whatcha paintin’, Stevie?”

    “Hi, Buck! Stark thought it might be a nice surprise if I painted something on your arm. He said I could paint whatever I wanted as long as it wasn’t the red star that you had before. I chose my shield, but I’m making a few changes to how it looks, so you get your own design, and not just an exact copy. What do you think?”

   The former assassin lifted his arm in order to see the new symbol. It was a black star over an arc-reactor, with a thick red border around it. He grinned and purred.

    “I love it! Thank you, Steve!” The blond chuckled.

    “You’re a very cute kitten, do you know that?”

    “I’m a master assassin! I am not _cute_!” The hybrid’s ears flattened in annoyance.

    “Yes, you are,” the captain said, leaning closer. When Bucky thought Steve was going to press their lips together, he moved his chin up and kissed the feline’s nose, then pulled back. “Go back to sleep, Buck. Somebody will be here when you wake up again.” He stood up, tucked the blankets around his friend, and gently stroked one of the feline’s ears until he was asleep.

    The former assassin woke up again a few hours later and looked to his left. Tony was there, sitting in a chair, and looking at his Starkpad, but he looked up after a few seconds, when he felt somebody watching him.

    “Hi! How are you feeling, kitten?” The super-soldier blinked again, trying to stay awake.

    “Good. Sleepy. Thank you for my new arm, Anthony. It’s pretty,” he whispered tiredly.

    The genius smiled. “You’re welcome, Bucky. And thank _you_ for speaking in English now. I guess this means you trust me, finally?”

    “Mmm...hmmm,” Bucky agreed sleepily, his eyes closing.

    “Come on. It’s getting late. Bedtime for little kittens named Buckitty!” The feline felt his forehead being kissed right before falling back asleep.


	4. Chapter 4

    “I know, Buck. I don’t want to go either, but if this is the only way to keep you safe, then I have to.” Tony walked into the room. Steve and Bucky were sitting on the couch, with the feline in the captain’s lap, discussing the upcoming mission that the blond was supposed to leave for in an hour. It had been a week since the surgery, and the Avengers were finally ready to start going after Hydra. The hybrid rolled his eyes.

    “I know you have to go. What _I’m_ saying is that I’m coming with you.” The blond shook his head.

    “It isn’t safe. That’s why you and Tony are staying here while the rest of us deal with Hydra.”

    “Tell me again _why_ I have to stay with Buckitty,” the genius requested, finally making his presence known.

    “Because if Hydra decides to take advantage of our not being home to get their so-called weapon back, someone needs to stay here and help Bucky.”

    “So, I’m the cat-sitter. Lovely. Why can’t we just pay Parker to do this for us?”

    “Peter has school, which means no one would be home during the day to help if Hydra shows up. Yes, Tony. I know you have to work, but it would be much easier for Bucky to go with you than it would for him to go with Peter.” He looked at Bucky. “ _You_ are staying here!” He then turned to the billionaire. “And _you_ are Bucky-sitting.” Both men opened their mouths to argue. “That’s an order!” He moved the feline off his lap. “Now, if you will both excuse me, I have to go pack and make sure everything is ready to go. I’ll be back as soon as I can. Try not to kill each other while I’m gone.”

    Three days later, Steve was finally home. Well, back in New York, at least. But before he could really go home, he first had to have his debriefing with the new Director of S.H.I.E.L.D., Thaddeus Ross. The general had taken over the position after Nick Fury was dismissed because he ignored an order from the World Security Council during the attack on New York by Loki and the Chitauri. As he stepped off the elevator and was about to make his way to the Director’s office, he was hit in his left hip by…

    “Bucky?” The person looked up. It was a boy, maybe four years old, with light brown cat ears that looked just a little too big for his body, one of which was severely damaged. His hair was covered by what looked like a sock that had a large hole cut out of it for his face and two more holes on top for his little ears to poke through. He was wearing a large shirt that went past his knees and covered his hands. The child opened his mouth, revealing sharp teeth and a sandpaper tongue, and let out a tiny “hi!”. The captain frowned. He was about to speak when he heard the sound of people running. Looking up from the kid, he saw two agents, a man and a woman, approaching.

    “Come back here!” The male agent walked over, picked the boy up by his armpits, and carried him back in the direction he had come from, still holding him by the armpits.

    “Bye, Mistah Amewica!” the child called as he was taken away. The woman was about to follow them, but she was stopped by the super-soldier.

    “Who’s that?” he asked. She shrugged.

    “Just some freak that we rescued when we were taking down A.I.M. I’m sorry you had to see him, Captain. We’ll make sure he doesn’t bother you again.” The captain had to take a deep breath to control his temper and not say something that he would (not) regret.

    “Understood. Dismissed, agent.”

    “Have a good day, Captain.” She turned and followed her partner back down the hall. Steve frowned again, then went to his debriefing.

    Two hours later, the blond walked out of the Tower’s elevator and onto his floor. He was absolutely exhausted, not in the mood to deal with any arguing that had happened between Bucky and Tony, and hadn’t been able to get that little boy’s face out of his mind. He just didn’t understand how somebody, or several somebodies, could treat someone… _a child_ …so horribly, hybrid or not. He walked into his bedroom and put his gear on the bed. After taking a shower and grabbing a sketchbook and pencil, the captain went into the living room to sit down and draw for a while. Walking in, he saw the other two men laying on the couch, fast asleep and cuddling. He smiled, then leaned over to cover them with the blanket that was on the back of the couch. He sat in the couch across from the one that the genius and hybrid were on and began to draw. When the super-soldier was almost done, there was a noise from the other couch.

    “Steve! You’re home! I missed you!” The hybrid climbed off of Tony then ran up and gave the blond a big hug, purring all the while.

    “Careful, Bucky. I was stabbed there,” Steve winced when one of the feline’s arms pressed too hard against his side.

    “You were _stabbed_? Are you ok? Do we have to get you to medbay? Is everyone else ok? How was your mission? Did you take down Hydra?” Bucky turned to wake up the businessman.

    “Hi! I missed you, too! Yeah, I was, but it healed pretty fast, so I’m fine. It’s just a little tender, is all. Everybody is alright. No one else was injured. You know I can’t give you details on the mission since you aren’t officially an Avenger yet, but we made some really good progress on finally taking them down permanently.”

    “Good!” Tony said, sitting up.

    “Steve?” He turned. The feline was looking at the sketchbook the captain had left open. “Is that me?”

    “Can I see it?” the genius asked, and Bucky handed it to him. “Who is this?”

    “He’s a little boy, a _preschooler_ , that I saw at S.H.I.E.L.D. when I went in for my debriefing. Looked like he was about four years old. He literally ran into my leg. At first I thought he was Bucky because of his cat ears. The agents there are treating him horribly. One agent carried him back to his room, which is probably more like a cell, _by his armpits_ , and another agent said that he’s, quote, ‘just some freak that we rescued when we were taking down A.I.M.’! It was awful. I’m not sure how much longer the Avengers can work with S.H.I.E.L.D. with Ross as the Director. He fired all of the good agents, or they disappeared, except for Natasha and Clint, and brought in these people that I’m pretty sure either worked or _still_ work for Hydra.” There was a moment of quiet in the room.

    “Anthony, go get my son!” Bucky demanded. The billionaire looked between the two super-soldiers. Steve nodded.

    “I’ll be back as soon as I can with Buckitty Junior. While I’m gone, ask F.R.I.D.A.Y. to find someplace for him to sleep. We’ll also have to get a bed, clothes, toys, and anything else you think he’ll want or need. She can help with that, too.” The two super-soldiers nodded, and Tony left.

    When he got there, he walked up to the receptionist’s desk. “Hi. I heard that S.H.I.E.L.D. uncovered some illegal experiments. I’d like to see them.”

    “Who are you?” she asked.

    “You know who I am. Where are the experiments?”

    “Which ones?” ‘ _So, there’s more than one experiment. I’ll have F.R.I.D.A.Y. look into that later._ ’

    “The ones from A.I.M.”

    “There’s only one.”

    “Fine. Show me.”

    “One moment, Sir. An agent will escort you.” He nodded. About five minutes later, an agent arrived.

    “This way, Mister Stark.” The agent lead him into an elevator and they travelled down several floors. The genius frowned.

    “You keep the experiment in the basement?” he asked.

    “ _These_ holding cells are only for the most dangerous experiments. The less dangerous ones are put in cells higher up.” Tony was lead out of the elevator and down a long hallway to the right. They stopped at a heavy metal door on the left-hand side just before the hall intersected with another one. The agent unlocked the door to reveal a tiny room with just enough space for a twin bed, table, and lamp.

    “How much will it cost me for you to leave us alone?” the business owner asked, before stepping into the room.

    “I can’t, Sir. I’ll be fired.”

    “Then make sure you don’t get caught.” He slipped the agent a wad of cash, roughly five thousand dollars, then turned back to the kid and bent down to his level.

    “Hi. I’m Tony. Do you remember your name?”

    “I’m Juniah!”

    “‘Junior’?” The child nodded.

    “Do you know your full name?” He shook his shook his head.

    “It’s ‘James Roger Stark, Junior’ now. ‘JR’, for short.” The boy grinned, then suddenly stopped as he looked over the genius’s shoulder. Tony turned and moved over slightly so he was shielding the little boy.

    “Stark, you can't do that!” Director Ross said firmly.

    “Just did.”

    “It’s ok. I like it!” JR piped up, then coughed loudly. The billionaire turned around so his back was to the Director and bent down.

    “Are you sick, kiddo? When was the last time you went to a doctor?” He pressed his hand against the child’s forehead, and winked at the boy. “You have a fever.” He turned back around. “He has Coopedupitis! We have to get him to a doctor _now_!”

    “That’s not a real thing, and you know it, Stark!” JR chose that moment to faint. Thankfully, Tony was able to catch him before he hit his head on the cement floor. He scooped the kid into his arms. “Move, Ross. I have to get him to a doctor!”

    “Let me call an ambulance.”

    “That will take too long! It’s going to be a lot faster if I just take him myself!” He pushed past the man, and quickly walked to the elevator, leaving the other man in JR’s former “room”. As the doors closed, the genius was finally able to take a deep breath. ‘ _Step one complete!_ ’ “Ok, JR. You can open your eyes and stand up now. Take my hand. When the doors open up, walk as fast as you can, and don’t let go of my hand.” When the elevator stopped, he stepped out and was immediately stopped by two security guards.

    “I’m sorry, Mister Stark, but you can’t take experiments out of the building.”

    “He’s not an experiment!” the business owner argued. “He’s a little boy who is very sick and needs a doctor! It’s a basic human right!”

    “But that thing _isn’t_ human, Stark.” The billionaire turned and saw Director Ross. ‘ _How did he get here so fast?_ ’

    “He’s part human, and if you and your minions had any decency, you would treat him like one! I’m taking him somewhere where he’ll be safe and happy and loved.”

    “Shoot him if he tries to leave with it,” the Director ordered his guards. Tony quickly bent down to the child’s level.

    “It’s time to go, JR! Do you trust me?” The boy nodded. “Good! I’m going to do something that might seem a little scary, but I promise it won’t hurt you, and I promise that it’s still me, ok?” JR nodded again. “Good boy. Now, right after I do the scary thing, I want you to put your arms around my neck and hold on as tight as you can. Got it?”

    “Got it!” The man stood up and tapped on the center of his chest. Nano robots formed an Iron Man suit around him, with the addition of a little sling for the child. As soon as the robots were finished, the genius bent down, grabbed the kid, and took off for the sky, leaving a giant hole in the roof of S.H.I.E.L.D.’s headquarters, just as the guards started to fire their weapons.

    Once they were far enough away that getting shot was no longer a concern, Tony called Steve and Bucky to warn them of the danger.

    “I want you and Barnes to pack your bags as fast as you can, and start the quinjet. We’ll intercept once you’re in the air,” he said in a rush.

    “‘We’? You got him?” the captain asked.

    “Yeah, Capsicle. Mission complete! Turns out you were right. They _did_ have him in a cell, in the basement. They didn’t see him as a little boy. They didn’t even think of him as _human_. I gave him a name, by the way, since the only thing he could remember being called was ‘Junior’.”

    “So, what’s his name?”

    “‘James Roger Stark, Junior’. I hope you two don’t mind. Having my last name will give him a bit of protection. And he’s a Buckitty Junior, so that’s where ‘James, Junior’ came from.”

    “And ‘Roger’ because my last name is Rogers?” Steve guessed.

    “You got it. I’ve been calling him JR. And JR isn’t safe! We need to leave New York as soon as possible. Ross will do _anything_ to get him back. Including murder. He _didn’t even hesitate_ to give the order to shoot me. It isn’t safe for any of the Avengers. Clint still has that farm with his family, right?”

    “ _Bucky! Go pack a bag. Take only what you need to survive._ Yeah, he does. Is that where we’re headed?”

    “For now. Hopefully Laura will let us stay for a while. At least long enough for us to come up with a plan to protect this adorable little kitty-cat. Who doesn’t seem to like heights very much.” He turned to the child, who was whimpering in fear and holding on for dear life. They were _really_ high up! “JR? Yeah. Hi. Yes, I told you to hold on as tight as you can, but I still need to be able to breathe. Loosen your death grip just a tiny bit, please. Thank you.”

    “ ** _Bucky_**! _You do_ ** _not_** _need to pack all the cans of tuna_! _‘Take only what you need to survive’, I said_! _Yes, of course people need food to survive._ _You’re not gonna die without the tuna_! _Put it back._ ** _All_** _of it, not just one can. There’s food where we’re going. Yes, I’m sure. Enough for all of us. We’ll just get more. From the grocery store. They won’t run out. Then we’ll just go hunting or fishing. **Everything will be fine**!_ Drama cat…” The blond muttered to himself. “What’s your ETA, Tony?”

    “About five minutes. Can you be out of the Tower by then?”

    “Yeah, we can. We’ll see you soon.” He disconnected the call.

    “Ok, kiddo. We need to look for a jet, an airplane. Do you know what an airplane looks like?” JR nodded.

    “What a smart boy you are! Are you in preschool?” The boy shook his head.

    “No, but I don’t need it! I know all my lettews, and colows, and shapes, and I can count to _ten_! One, two, eight, ten, six, thwee, seven, five, nine, fow!  Gwampa Stan teached me!” ‘ _Well, he’s right. He_ **_can_ ** _count to ten. We just have to work on saying them in the right order. And practice saying our Rs._ ’

    “Taught you,” the genius corrected gently. “You have a grandfather? Do you know his phone number or address? Or even his last name?”

    “His name was Stan Lee, but he wasn’t _weally_ my gwampa. He was just a weally nice old man who took cawe of me when I was with A.I.M. He even made me this!” He reached a hand up to the pink material. “We watched a video on making a vest using a sock, but it was too small, so we made it into a hat! It even has little holes for my eaws! See?!” The kid bent his head down and pointed to his ears. “But he was nice to me, and he wasn’t supposed to be, so they killed him.” He sniffled sadly. “That was the day S.H.I.E.L.D. came.”

    “I’m sorry, JR. But you don’t need to worry. You’re going someplace where you’ll be safe and happy. We’re going to take really good care of you. I promise!” JR nodded, still looking a little sad from having to talk about Grampa Stan, but suddenly perked up. The jet!

    “Yeah, I see it, too!” The genius made a slight adjustment to get a better hold on the boy, then flew as fast as he could toward the jet. As they approached, a door on the jet opened, and Bucky was standing at the entrance, waiting to greet them.

    “It’s a boy!” Tony greeted the super-soldier when he was inside with the kid. “Take JR for a minute. I want to get out of my suit.”

    “Hello to you, too,” the former Hydra assassin said grumpily, but took the child, who immediately became fascinated by the man’s cat ears that were so similar to his own. Tony rolled his eyes as the suit slowly went back to the place it was housed on his chest.

    “Sorry. Where’s Cap?”

    “Flying the plane,” Bruce said. The billionaire turned, surprised.

    “When did _you_ get here?”

    “Since I heard you kidnapped a child that could be injured. Let me just give him a quick check-up and we can get the hell out of here.”

    “Yeah, but to where?” Bucky asked, looking up from the bench he was sitting on, with JR fast asleep on his lap.

    “He’s downright precious. I’ll do the check-up later. What about my house in India?”

    “Tony said that we should go to Clint’s house. S.H.I.E.L.D doesn’t know about that. We won’t stay long. Just a day or two to come up with a plan,” Steve said from behind Tony, scaring all three men.

    “Who’s flying the plane?!” The business owner sounded panicked.

    “F.R.I.D.A.Y.” There was a moment of silence.

    “Crap,” Tony swore quietly. “We shouldn’t go to Clint’s. That safe house… safe farm?... was given to him by S.H.I.E.L.D., which means that they know about it. JR won’t be safe there! And this is their quinjet! They probably have a GPS tracker on it. No, I’m gonna go wake up the kid and take him someplace safer. I wonder if T’Challa will let us stay?” He took a step toward the sleeping child but wasn’t able to get any closer because the captain had a firm grip on his shoulder.

    “We should let him sleep. He’s had a long day. Don’t worry so much, Tony. We found and disabled the tracker. And no one knows about the farm. Clint told me that he went directly to Fury, so there’s no papertrail. The kid will be safe there.” The billionaire sighed and nodded.

    “We need to keep him close. I don’t want him out of my sight.”

    “Rest a little…” Steve said before going back to the pilot’s seat. “Please?”

    “We both know I can’t do that.” He felt that annoying headache in the center of his forehead. Bucky reached forward, pulled down him onto the bench, and placed a kiss right on top of the spot that Tony’s hands previously were, trying to soothe the pain.

    “I hate to see you sad,” the hybrid whispered, pulling Tony closer to him. The genius let his head rest against the other man’s shoulder. “Is there anything I can do to make you feel better?”

    “Keep JR safe. Keep _yourself_ safe. I don’t know what I would do if something happened to any of you.”   

     “I pinky-promise I won’t let anyone get hurt or killed.” The super-soldier held up his pinky and wrapped it around the business owner’s. “Good night.”

    “I’m not sleeping.”

    “But you’re tired!”

    “No, I’m not. We’re on a mission. I don’t have _time_ to be tired.”

    Bucky rolled his eyes. “Really, just take a fucking nap. I’ll wake you up when we get there.”

    “Fine,” he grumbled. Tony closed his eyes. Just as he was about to fall asleep, JR woke up from his nap with a startled gasp, bolting up into a sitting position.

    “Hey. It’s ok!” Hydra’s former assassin soothed. “You’re safe, Little Kitty. Shhhh. Everything’s alright. What happened?”

    “Bad dweam,” the child whispered.

    “I’m sorry. Do you want to talk about it?”

    “No.” He shook his head.

    “Well, do you want to try going back to sleep? I can sing to you, if you want,” the man suggested. The kid nodded and lied back down.

    “Котя, котенька, коток,  
Котя – серенький хвосток,  
Приди, котя, ночевать,  
Нашу деточку качать,  
Уж как я тебе, коту,  
За работу заплачу –  
Дам кусок пирога  
Да кувшин молока!”

    The genius was asleep before Bucky had even gotten half-way through the lullaby, so he missed JR’s sleepy “I love you, Mama” as he too drifted off to sleep.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> A/N: The song that Bucky sings in this chapter, and in Chapter 3, is a Russian lullaby entitled “Котя, котенька, коток”. Here are the lyrics in English: 
> 
> PUSSY-CAT
> 
> Pussy, little kitty,  
> Kitty - little, grey tail.  
> Come to us and stay the night,  
> To rock our little baby.  
> I will pay you, cat,  
> For your job -  
> I will give you a piece of cake  
> And a jug of milk.
> 
>  
> 
> And we would like to thank csocscsirke on Tumblr (csocscsirke.tumblr.com) for allowing us to use her own sock-head cat, Szuszek, as inspiration for JR.


End file.
